Who will be mayor of Lucea?

WESTERN BUREAU:

WITH THE local government election now a thing of the past, and the People’s National Party (PNP) declared the winner of all seven council divisions in Hanover, questions of who will be the next mayor of Lucea, and chairman of the Hanover Municipal Corporation (HMC) have arisen.

Besides the Mayor of Portmore, who is directly elected in that municipality, the custom in all other municipal corporations is that the elected councillors decide among themselves who will lead the group as chairman of the Municipal Corporation (MC), and thus also be declared as mayor.

Prior to the dissolution of municipal corporations islandwide to facilitate the February 26 Local Government election, Sheridan Samuels, the councillor for the Cauldwell Division in Hanover Western served as the mayor of Lucea and chairman of the HMC, with Andria Dehaney-Grant, councillor for the Sandy Bay division in Hanover Eastern serving as the deputy mayor.

However, Dehaney-Grant was regarded as the face of the HMC, as during that tenure she played a leadership role in almost every civic ceremony held across the parish, while also being ever present on behalf of the corporation at other private and public functions and ceremonies.

The HMC will have two new faces when recently elected councillors are sworn in on Thursday, March 7, in councillor for the Hopewell and Chester Castle divisions, Lennox Fray and Wynter McIntosh, respectively. While Fray is new to elected politics, McIntosh has previously served in the HMC as a councillor and mayor during his stint in that corporation between 2011 and 2016.

McIntosh, a lecturer at the Knockalva Polytechnic College, played down the suggestion that he had eyes on the mayoral chair, arguing that such an elevation would have to be the decision of his fellow elected councillors.

“My intention is mainly to regain the seat to serve the people of the Chester Castle division once more, as there are some ... projects that I did not get to complete during my previous term in office,” he said.

He said, however, that he would be willing to serve in that capacity if asked.

Dehaney-Grant, who is also principal of a primary school, and who won her division by the largest margin of all the seven councillors-elect within the parish, told The Gleaner that she had achieved her aim, which was to win her division by over 1,000 votes.

When asked whether given such a huge win margin, she aspired to be mayor, Dehaney-Grant responded: “I do not know if I will get the opportunity, but if I do get the opportunity I would welcome it, and I am sure that the Sandy Bay division, which I represent, would be extremely happy if I am given the opportunity.”

“I do not know what the future holds, so I am open for anything that happens right now,” she emphasised.

Both McIntosh and Dehaney-Grant shared, however, that even if not selected for the position, they would cooperate and work with whomever of the elected councillors is chosen to serve as mayor.

Efforts to get a comment from the incumbent Mayor, Sheridan Samuels, proved futile, as several attempts to contact him by telephone went unanswered. Meanwhile, several members of the public have expressed their eagerness to see which of the seven elected PNP councillors will be given the task to chair the corporation, even as they declared their preferences.

editorial@gleanerjm.com